The Nigerian government during the China (Changsha)-Nigeria Investment, Economic and Trade Promotion Conference held in April 2023 expressed certain trade concerns to the Chinese government regarding claims that substandard products are being imported from China to Africa, especially Nigeria, as opposed to what China exports to industrialised countries.
China has the fastest-growing import market in Nigeria, from products ranging from raw materials, clothes, solid minerals, and manufactured goods. A bulk of Nigeria’s non-oil import is sourced from China.
However, Nigerians tag most of these Chinese products as fake due to their substandard quality.
Data shows that China made up between 22 per cent and 26 per cent of Nigeria’s total imports in the past five years.
Yet, Nigeria loses an average of N15 trillion a year to counterfeit or fake goods, with approximately 55% of imported items being subpar and phoney, according to the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON).
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Does the world think China produces substandard goods, or it’s a Nigeria problem?
China was the world’s top exporter of telephones, computers, office machine parts, broadcasting equipment, and semiconductor devices in 2021. The top five exports from China are computers, integrated circuits, office machine parts and telephones, with the majority going to the United States, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Germany.
According to Trading Economics, China exported the most to the United States, with 17% of its total exports to the USA. Hong Kong came second with 8.5% of its exports. Other countries to which China exports the majority of its goods are Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, India, Netherlands, Germany, Malaysia, and the United Kingdom.
It is worth mentioning that some Chinese exports are not solely held by the Chinese. Many Western companies prefer to produce their products in China due to China’s well-integrated supply chain ecosystems to optimise raw material sourcing and assembly, efficiency, robust manufacturing infrastructure, efficient logistics, and a skilled workforce.
In an interview with the CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, he stated that most manufacturing businesses move to China because of the skill, the quantity of skill in one place, and the sort of skill there.
There is no solitary response to the query “Chinese quality”. While some people or countries think Chinese-produced goods are of worse quality than those made in other nations, others disagree and think they are just as good.
There are Chinese goods that are well-made and of high quality, and Chinese goods that are created extremely inexpensively and of poor quality. It largely relies on the specific product, the manufacturer and quality control measures in the form of import regulations in countries.
For example, Before selling to international markets, American exporters must comply with additional rules, tests, labelling, or licencing requirements for their products, and the same goes for the goods imported into the country.
In 2007, China came under fire from the USA for failing to halt exporting poisonous medical supplies, meals, toys, and toxic national products from China.
This indicates that some other countries have had their fair share of these “inferior goods,” but policies enacted by some of these countries have worked to limit the entry of these substandard goods.
Nigeria has no functional quality control system or regulations to monitor the quality of goods that come into the country, except for a bill of lading, commercial invoice, exit note, packing list, single goods declaration, and a product certificate.
Are there any efforts being made to improve the regulatory bodies in Nigeria?
Under the SON Conformity Assessment Programme (SONCAP commodities are inspected before shipment to ensure that imports into Nigeria comply with applicable Nigeria Industry Standards (NIS) or recognised equivalents.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is also another body that has the authority to “regulate and control the importation, exportation, manufacture, advertisement, distribution, sale, and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, bottled water, and chemicals” or regulated products by conducting tests to ensure compliance with NAFDAC Council standards specifications.
Despite the presence and operation of these agencies, Nigeria remains a dumping ground for Chinese and other foreign products.
What specific measures can Nigeria take to reduce substandard products from China?
The Chairman of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria Export Group (MANEG), Ede Dafinone, held that both Nigerians and Chinese import fake and substandard products from China. He said, “Nigerians go there and make their request, and Chinese manufacturers give them what they want.”
This shows that the Chinese are not solely responsible for the substandard goods imported into Nigeria. There are other issues, such as Nigeria’s tax laws and Nigerian importers’ desire for low pricing, which results in poor quality products, besides China’s failure to inspect its exports, especially to countries weak regulatory regimes.
Public health, consumer safety, and the economy may suffer from poor-quality goods. These may result in resource waste, diminished consumer trust, and possible hazards to public health and individual safety.
There is a need for more market surveillance in Nigeria. Markets should be routinely observed to spot and eliminate inferior goods and prevent their entry.
Besides this, there is the need to strengthen customs and regulatory agencies to conduct thorough inspections and enforce quality standards on imported goods.
Nigeria can consider negotiating stricter trade agreements with China to guarantee adherence to international quality standards and enforcing penalties for non-compliance.
Finally, promoting domestic manufacturing will also help lower Nigeria’s desperation for foreign products, necessitating its over-reliance on imports from cheap but compromised sources as China. This creates a pathway for trust in locally produced quality goods.